Is a Bee Swarm dangerous?

Bees in general are gentle creatures, who rarely sting unless provoked.  If you antagonize a bee, or if a bee accidentally gets caught under your clothing, it could sting.  However, if a bee stings you, the stinger pulls out.  This means the bee can only sting once, and it dies afterwards, so stinging is literally a last resort.  If a bee lands on you it is most likely just curious – don’t swat at it or bother it and it will probably just fly off.

A bee swarm is scary because there are tens of thousands of bees in one ball, with many thousands of others flying around.  Surprisingly though, this is when the bees are the most gentle, so there is very little danger.  We will sometimes capture swarms wearing no protective gear at all!  None the less, it is best to stay away from the swarm and not bother them, especially is you may be allergic to bee stings.